Normandy '44 AAR

[CountryBoy]

Turn 53. 08:00 11 June 1944.

To Turn 53 and visibility is still restricted to just one hex. Disrupted units are highlighted in red.

Starting in the Caen area as usual, and not too much change here. The 21st Panzer and 12th SS Divisions are still on station and relatively unmolested by the British units in the area, the 3rd Canadian, 51st Highland and 50th Northumbrian.



Moving further west and to the Bayeux area, and the Allies are almost non-existent in this part of the front. The 12th SS and Panzer Lehr divisions are in a good position here. Both British and US units are here, including the US 1st Infantry Division opposite the Panzer Lehr. You can see in the screenshot below my spaced defensive lines, now three rows deep, and even four deep in some places.



Moving further west, and here is a big change as we see the first use of Allied armour in significant quantities. The US 29th Infantry Division is making a big push here, supported by tanks from the US 2nd Armoured Division. This is a smart move by my opponent as this area is mostly held by the weak 77th Infantry Division and some German paratroopers. I am going to have to move some Panzer Lehr units here, which will stretch the division to dangerous levels.



Moving further west again, and the paratroopers of the 82nd and 101st are racing across the Cherbourg peninsula. They are now only around 13km from Cherbourg itself and I am working hard to withdraw what units I can from the peninsula before they are cut off by the Allies. Fortunately my opponent hasn't seemed to have figured out my plan to withdraw west and south to my new defensive line being established by the 17th SS Pzg division. 



Regarding the defensive position, you can see it more clearly in the next screenshot. Basically I have to move my units in the peninsula to the left and down, a bit like a windscreen wiper, tucking them behind the defensive positions established by the 17th SS Pzgr division. A problem I see here is that there is hardly any German armour in the area, although the same can be said for the Allies at this stage.



The jump map shows the bigger picture:



While the VP situation is not much changed:



Overall I guess I am as happy as I can be. The withdrawal from Cherbourg is proceeding reasonably well, although I still have a job to get as many troops to the new defensive line as I can. I am worried about the thrust by the Allies in the area west of Bayeux, where I have only poor quality troops and not much armour. Reinforcements will be coming but that will take time. Thankfully the poor weather is still grounding Allied planes, allowing me some freedom of movement.